Soldering Apparatus

ABSTRACT

A soldering apparatus includes transfer rails as a first transfer means for transferring a printed circuit board, transfer rails as a second transfer means provided in parallel to a transfer direction of the printed circuit board to be transferred by the transfer rails, a muffle as a first reflow furnace main body for heating the printed circuit board transferred by the transfer rails, a muffle as a second reflow furnace main body for heating a printed circuit board transferred by the transfer rails, and a main frame as a frame for housing the muffle and the muffle. The main frame includes an opening/closing part as a first opening/closing means for opening/closing the muffle, and an opening/closing part as a second opening/closing means for opening/closing the muffle.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a soldering apparatus for bonding anelectronic component(s) onto a printed circuit board.

BACKGROUND

A reflow device has been generally used as an example of a solderingapparatus for soldering an electronic component(s) onto a printedcircuit board. The reflow device includes a transfer means fortransferring the printed circuit board, and the inside of the reflowdevice is divided into a preheating zone, a main heating zone, a coolingzone, and the like from the upstream of a transfer direction of theprinted circuit board. Paste solder is printed on the printed circuitboard in advance, an electronic component(s) is (are) mounted on thisprinted circuit board and they are heated by the reflow device to solderthe electronic component(s) onto the printed circuit board.

Patent Documents 1 and 2 respectively disclose reflow devices in each ofwhich a plurality of transfer means is arranged in parallel in a reflowfurnace to improve the efficiency of soldering and shielding means isprovided between the respective transfer means.

DOCUMENTS FOR PRIOR ART Patent Documents

-   Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No.    2014-170906-   Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent No. 5463129

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

However, the reflow devices of Patent Documents 1 and 2 have such aconfiguration that, when the reflow furnace main body is opened, theplurality of transfer means and various zones such as a preheating zone,a main heating zone and a cooling zone, which operate with respect tothe printed circuit boards to be transferred by the respective transfermeans, are exposed. Therefore, even when it is desired, for example, tomaintain one transfer means side of the reflow furnace main body, it hasbeen necessary to stop the drives of the other transfer means and/or therespective zones. Further, they have such a problem that, by opening thereflow furnace main body, the inside of the reflow furnace main body isexposed to the outside air, and the temperature of each of the zones inwhich heat is applied to the printed circuit board transferred by eachof the transfer means is changed.

Therefore, the present invention solves such a problem, and an objectthereof is to provide a soldering apparatus, in which transfer means arearranged in parallel, for preventing, even when the one transfer meansside of a reflow furnace main body is opened, the inside of the reflowfurnace main body on the other transfer means side from being exposed.

Means for Solving the Problems

The technical means of the present invention adopted to solve theabove-described problem are as follows.

(1) A soldering apparatus includes first transfer means for transferringa printed circuit board, second transfer means provided in parallel to atransfer direction of the printed circuit board transferred by the firsttransfer means, a first reflow furnace main body for heating the printedcircuit board transferred by the first transfer means, a second reflowfurnace main body for heating a printed circuit board transferred by thesecond transfer means, and a frame for housing the first reflow furnacemain body and the second reflow furnace main body, wherein the framecontains first opening/closing means for opening/closing the firstreflow furnace main body and second opening/closing means foropening/closing the second reflow furnace main body.

(2) The soldering apparatus according to the above item (1), whereineach of the first and second reflow furnace main bodies is configured tohave an upper main body and a lower main body, wherein the firstopening/closing means includes first lifting/lowering means forlifting/lowering the upper main body of the first reflow furnace mainbody, and wherein the second opening/closing means includes secondlifting/lowering means for lifting/lowering the upper main body of thesecond reflow furnace main body.

(3) The soldering apparatus according to the above item (2), wherein thefirst lifting/lowering means is arranged while avoiding the firsttransfer means, and wherein the second lifting/lowering means isarranged while avoiding the second transfer means.

(4) The soldering apparatus according to the above item (2) or (3),wherein the first lifting/lowering means and the second lifting/loweringmeans include multistage cylinders.

(5) The soldering apparatus according to any one of the above items (2)to (4), wherein the lower main body of the first reflow furnace mainbody is provided with an elastic member at a position where the elasticmember is sandwiched between the upper main body and the lower main bodyof the first reflow furnace main body and is in contact with them, andwherein the lower main body of the second reflow furnace main body isprovided with an elastic member at a position where the elastic memberis sandwiched between the upper main body and the lower main body of thesecond reflow furnace main body and is in contact with them.

(6) The soldering apparatus according to any one of the above items (2)to (5), wherein the first opening/closing means includes a first uppercover that covers an upper side and a lateral side of the upper mainbody of the first reflow furnace main body, wherein the secondopening/closing means includes a second upper cover that covers an upperside and a lateral side of the upper main body of the second reflowfurnace main body, and wherein the frame has an upstream sideintrusion-preventing plate that is erected from the frame on an upstreamside of the first upper cover and the second upper cover with respect toa transfer direction of any of the printed circuit boards and adownstream side intrusion-preventing plate that is erected from theframe on a downstream side of the first upper cover and the second uppercover with respect to the transfer direction of any of the printedcircuit boards.

(7) The soldering apparatus according to any one of the above items (1)to (6), wherein an upstream end and a downstream end of the firsttransfer means along the transfer direction of the printed circuit boardare provided on the frame, and wherein an upstream end and a downstreamend of the second transfer means along the transfer direction of theprinted circuit board are also provided on the frame.

(8) The soldering apparatus according to any one of the above items (1)to (7), wherein a heat-insulating member is provided around the firstreflow furnace main body and the second reflow furnace main body.

(9) The soldering apparatus according to any one of the above items (1)to (8), wherein the first reflow furnace main body and the second reflowfurnace main body respectively include a preheating zone for preheatingthe printed circuit board, a main heating zone for soldering thepreheated printed circuit board, and a cooling zone for cooling thesoldered printed circuit board.

Effects of the Invention

The soldering apparatus according to the present invention includes afirst opening/closing means for opening/closing the first reflow furnacemain body and a second opening/closing means for opening/closing thesecond reflow furnace main body. Accordingly, the first reflow furnacemain body and the second reflow furnace main body can be opened/closedseparately. Furthermore, it is possible to set mutually differentindependent temperature profiles for soldering the printed circuitboards to the first reflow furnace main body and the second reflowfurnace main body. Therefore, even when the one reflow furnace main bodyis opened, the inside of the other reflow furnace main body can beprevented from being exposed, and the other reflow furnace main body cankeep the set temperature profile, while avoiding the temperatureinterference by the one reflow furnace main body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a partially exploded view of a soldering apparatus 100according to the present invention for showing a configuration examplethereof.

FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of the soldering apparatus 100 forshowing a configuration example thereof as viewed from the arrow A1direction in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view of a main frame 10, transfer rails13A, 13B, cylinders 31A, 31B, and a rail width adjustment part 41A,taken along the lines A2-A2 in FIG. 2, for showing a configurationexample thereof.

FIG. 4 is a partially exploded view of the soldering apparatus 100 forshowing a configuration example thereof.

FIG. 5A is a schematic sectional view of the transfer rails 13A, 13B,muffles 20A, 20B and opening/closing parts 30A, 30B, taken along thelines A3-A3 in FIG. 4, for showing a configuration example thereof whilethe muffle 20A is opened.

FIG. 5B is a side view of the transfer rails 13A, 13B, the muffles 20A,20B and the opening/closing parts 30A, 30B for showing a configurationexample thereof while the muffle 20A is opened.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the soldering apparatus 100 for showing acontrol system thereof.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of the cylinders 31A, 31B and 31C forshowing an operation example thereof.

EMBODIMENT FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

There will describe a configuration of a soldering apparatus 100 as anembodiment according to the present invention with reference to thedrawings. The soldering apparatus 100 is configured to solder printedcircuit boards P1, P2 on each of which a surface mounting component(s)such as a power device is (are) mounted, for example. Hereinafter, theterm “upstream” means an upstream side along a transfer direction of anyof the printed circuit boards P1, P2, and represents a side of aboard-charging port 11 for transferring the printed circuit boards P1,P2, shown in FIG. 2, into the soldering apparatus 100. Further, the term“downstream” means a downstream side along the transfer direction of anyof the printed circuit boards P1, P2, and represents a side of a boardcarrying-out port 12 for transferring the printed circuit boards P1, P2out of the soldering apparatus 100.

[Overall Configuration of Soldering Apparatus 100]

FIG. 1 is a partially exploded view of the soldering apparatus 100 asviewed from the upstream side. The soldering apparatus 100 includestransfer rails 13A as a first transfer means for transferring theprinted circuit board P1, transfer rails 13B as a second transfer meansfor transferring the printed circuit board P2, a muffle 20A as a firstreflow furnace main body for heating the printed circuit board P1, amuffle 20B as a second reflow furnace main body for heating the printedcircuit board P2, and a main frame 10 as a frame for housing the muffles20A, 20B. The main frame 10 includes an opening/closing part 30A as afirst opening/closing means for opening/closing the muffle 20A, and anopening/closing part 30B as a second opening/closing means foropening/closing the muffle 20B. The transfer rails 13B are provided inparallel to the transfer rails 13A along the transfer direction of theprinted circuit board P1. The main frame 10 includes, at its inside, acontrol unit 70 as shown in FIG. 6 which controls the operation of eachunit.

As shown in FIG. 2, the main frame 10 is a case having a board-chargingport 11 at its upstream end for transferring the printed circuit boardsP1, P2 into the main frame 10, and having a board carrying-out port 12at its downstream end for transferring the printed circuit boards P1, P2out of the main frame 10. In the main frame 10, a plurality of rooms(zones) divided in series in the transfer direction of the printedcircuit boards P1, P2 are provided. For example, a board-charging unit14, a preheating zone 17 consisting of four zones I to IV, a mainheating zone 18 consisting of one zone, a cooling zone 19, and a boardcarrying-out part 16 are arranged in this order from the upstream sideto the downstream side along the transfer direction of the printedcircuit boards P1, P2. Among them, the preheating zone 17, the mainheating zone 18 and the cooling zone 19 are respectively provided in themuffle 20A, 20B. In the present embodiment, however, the zones on themuffle 20A side and the muffle 20B side will be collectively describedbelow so that the zone configurations in the muffle 20A and the muffle20B are the same.

The preheating zone 17 has heaters 7 for preheating the printed circuitboards P1, P2 to a predetermined temperature, which are providedoppositely in a vertical direction of the transfer rails 13A, 13B. Thepreheating zone 17 is preferably intended to raise the heatingtemperature of the printed circuit boards P1, P2 stepwise. Thepreheating zone 17 may have a plurality of preheating zones havingdifferent heating temperatures. For example, when it is desired to causethe printed circuit boards P1, P2 to reach 180° C., four preheatingzones I to IV are provided, and the heating temperature of the heaters 7in each preheating zone may be set to 150° C., 160° C., 170° C. and 180°C. In each of the zones I to IV in the preheating zone 17 of thisembodiment, the gas (hot air) heated by the heaters 7 is blown to theprinted circuit boards P1, P2 by a fan to heat the printed circuitboards P1, P2.

The main heating zone 18 is intended to solder the printed circuitboards P1, P2 preheated in the preheating zone 17. The main heating zone18 has heaters 8 for heating the solder to a temperature equal to orhigher than its melting temperature, the heaters 8 being providedoppositely in the vertical direction of the transfer rails 13A, 13B. Theheaters 8 are set to a heating temperature of about 250° C. as anexample.

The cooling zone 19 has cooling fans 9, as an example of a cold airblower for cooling the heated and soldered printed circuit boards P1,P2, the cooling fans 9 being provided oppositely in the verticaldirection of the transfer rails 13A, 13B. In this embodiment, thecooling fans 9 are ON- or OFF-controlled only, but the operator mayarbitrarily set the cooling time in accordance with the product.Further, temperature control may be performed using means such as achiller so as to cool the printed circuit boards P1, P2 to apredetermined temperature. Also in this case, the operator canarbitrarily set the cooling temperature.

As shown in FIG. 3, the main frame 10 is provided with lower innerframes 10B which are located at a position sandwiching the transferrails 13A and a position sandwiching the transfer rails 13B, on theinner side with respect to a lower outer frame 10A constituting a lowersurface of the soldering apparatus 100. Furthermore, the main frame 10has inner columns 10C erected above the transfer rails 13A, 13B from thelower inner frames 10B, and pedestals 10D supported from below on theinner columns 10C. The pedestals 10D are provided above the transferrails 13A, 13B.

As shown in FIG. 4, at the upper part of the main frame 10, operationdisplay units 71 for allowing an operator to input various settings isprovided. In the present embodiment, two personal computers 71A, 71B arearranged on the upstream side of the transfer rails 13B as the operationdisplay units 71. The personal computer 71A is used to set drive controlsettings such as the transfer speed of the transfer rails 13A and thetemperature setting and air volume setting in the muffle 20A, and thepersonal computer 71B is used to set drive control settings such as thetransfer speed of the transfer rails 13B and the temperature setting andair volume setting in the muffle 20B. The display screen of the personalcomputer 71A displays the settings and driving conditions on the muffle20A side, and the display screen of the personal computer 71B displaysthe settings and driving conditions on the muffle 20B side.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the upstream end and downstream end of thetransfer rails 13A, 13B are provided on the main frame 10 and theyextend in parallel from the board-charging port 11 to the boardcarrying-out port 12. The transfer rails 13A, 13B transfer the printedcircuit boards P1, P2 charged into the soldering apparatus 100 from theboard-charging port 11 in an arrow direction in FIG. 2 and transfer themout of the soldering apparatus 100 from the board carrying-out port 12.A pair of the transfer rails 13A supports the lower surface and sidesurface of the printed circuit board P1 and transfers it at apredetermined speed, and a pair of the transfer rails 13B supports thelower surface and side surface of the printed circuit board P2 andtransfers it at the predetermined speed. As the transfer rails 13A, 13B,it is preferable to use pairs of rails that can be adjusted in width inaccordance with the width of the printed circuit boards P1, P2 to betransferred. In the present embodiment, the widths of the transfer rails13A, 13B can be respectively adjusted independently by rail widthadjustment parts 41A provided at the upstream end and downstream end ofthe main frame 10.

The rail width adjustment parts 41A adjust the widths of the transferrails 13A, 13B according to the widths of the printed circuit boards P1,P2 input by the operator using the operation display units 71.Specifically, in the rail width adjustment parts 41A, screws arerespectively formed corresponding to the transfer rails 13A, 13B, andthe transfer rails 13A, 13B are respectively screwed on these screwshafts. Between the pair of the transfer rails 13A, the one is fixed,and the other moves according to the rotation of the screw shaft,whereby the width of the transfer rails 13A can be narrowed or widened.Also between the pair of the transfer rails 13B, the one is fixed, andthe other moves according to the rotation of the screw shaft, wherebythe width of the transfer rails 13B can be narrowed or widened.

Returning back to FIG. 1, the muffle 20A has an upper muffle 20 a as anupper main body and a lower muffle 20 b as a lower main body. The uppermuffle 20 a and the lower muffle 20 b are provided at positionsvertically sandwiching the transfer rails 13A along the transfer rails13A. The muffle 20B has an upper muffle 20 c as an upper main body and alower muffle 20 d as a lower main body. The upper muffle 20 c and thelower muffle 20 d are provided at positions vertically sandwiching thetransfer rails 13B along the transfer rails 13B. In the muffles 20A,20B, an inert gas such as nitrogen gas (N2) may sometimes be supplied asan atmosphere gas to suppress the oxidation of the solder. As will bedescribed in detail later, the muffle 20A is opened/closed bylifting/lowering the upper muffle 20 a by the operation of theopening/closing part 30A. In addition, the muffle 20B is opened/closedby lifting/lowering the upper muffle 20 c by the operation of theopening/closing part 30B.

A heat insulating member 21 a is provided around the upper muffle 20 a,and a heat insulating member 21 b is provided around the lower muffle 20b. The heat insulating member 21 a covers the upper surface and sidesurface of the upper muffle 20 a, and the heat insulating member 21 bcovers the lower surface and side surface of the lower muffle 20 b. Bycovering the periphery of the muffle 20A with the heat insulatingmembers 21 a and 21 b, the temperature interference from the outside ofthe muffle 20A to the inside of the muffle 20A is suppressed. That is,the muffle 20A is not influenced by the temperature setting in each zonein the muffle 20B.

A heat insulating member 21 c is provided around the upper muffle 20 c,and a heat insulating member 21 d is provided around the lower muffle 20d. The heat insulating member 21 c covers the upper surface and sidesurface of the upper muffle 20 c, and the heat insulating member 21 dcovers the lower surface and side surface of the lower muffle 20 d. Bycovering the periphery of the muffle 20B with the heat insulatingmembers 21 c and 21 d, the temperature interference from the outside ofthe muffle 20B to the inside of the muffle 20B is suppressed. That is,the muffle 20B is not influenced by the temperature setting in each zonein the muffle 20A.

As shown in FIG. 5A, the lower muffle 20 b is provided with an elasticmember 24 at a position where it is sandwiched between the upper muffle20 a and the lower muffle 20 b and is in contact with them. The lowermuffle 20 d is provided with an elastic member 24 at a position where itis sandwiched between the upper muffle 20 c and the lower muffle 20 dand is in contact with them. Each of the elastic members 24 is elongatedand is provided from the upstream end to the downstream end of themuffles 20A, 20B. The elastic members 24 may be provided on the uppermuffles 20 a, 20 c, but in the present embodiment, two rows of theelastic members 24 are provided on adjacent edges of the lower muffles20 b, 20 d, and three rows of the elastic members 24 are provided onmutually distant edges of the lower muffles 20 b, 20 d. The elasticmembers 24 suppress positional deviation of the upper muffles 20 a, 20 cand the lower muffles 20 b, 20 d by opening/closing of the muffles 20A,20B, and keep airtightness in the muffles 20A, 20B.

The opening/closing part 30A includes cylinders 31A as firstlifting/lowering means for lifting/lowering the upper muffle 20 a and adrive mechanism (not shown) for driving the cylinders 31A, and furtherincludes a sub-frame 32A to which the cylinders 31A are attached belowand an upper cover 33A provided above the sub-frame 32A to cover theupper side and lateral side of the upper muffle 20 a.

The opening/closing part 30B includes cylinders 31B as firstlifting/lowering means for lifting/lowering the upper muffle 20 c and adrive mechanism (not shown) for driving the cylinder 31B, and furtherincludes a sub-frame 32B to which the cylinders 31B are attached belowand an upper cover 33B provided above the sub-frame 32B to cover theupper side and lateral side of the upper muffle 20 c.

As shown in FIG. 3, four cylinders 31A, 31B are respectively arranged onthe pedestal 10D. In the present embodiment, the two cylinders 31A arearranged on the pedestal 10D on the upstream side of the transfer rails13A, and the two cylinders 31A are arranged on the pedestal 10D on thedownstream side of the transfer rails 13A. The two cylinders 31B arearranged on the upstream side of the pedestal 10D on the transfer rails13B, and the two cylinders 31B are arranged on the pedestal 10D on thedownstream side of the transfer rails 13B. As described above, thepedestals 10D avoid the transfer rails 13A, 13B by being supported bythe inner columns 10C which are erected above the transfer rails 13A,13B from the lower side of the main frame 10. Therefore, the cylinders31A are provided above the transfer rails 13A while avoiding thetransfer rails 13A, and the cylinders 31B are provided above thetransfer rails 13B while avoiding the transfer rails 13B. Multistageelectric cylinders are used as the cylinders 31A, 31B of the presentembodiment.

As shown in FIG. 5A, the sub-frame 32A is provided above the uppermuffle 20 a. The upper muffle 20 a and the sub-frame 32A are screwed viathe heat insulating member 21 a, and the sub-frame 32A and the uppercover 33A are screwed. As a result, when the cylinders 31Aextend/retract in the vertical direction, the upper muffle 20 a, thesub-frame 32A and the upper cover 33A integrally lift/lower, and themuffle 20A is opened/closed by the opening/closing part 30A.

Specifically, when the cylinders 31A extend upward, the sub-frame 32A ispushed upward, so that the upper muffle 20 a and the upper cover 33A arealso pushed upward, and the muffle 20A is opened. When the cylinders 31Aretract downward, the sub-frame 32A is pulled downward, so that theupper muffle 20 a and the upper cover 33A are also pulled downward, andthe muffle 20A is closed.

The sub-frame 32B is provided above the upper muffle 20 c. The uppermuffle 20 c and the sub-frame 32B are screwed via the heat insulatingmember 21 c, and the sub-frame 32B and the upper cover 33B are screwed.Accordingly, when the cylinders 31B extend/retract in the verticaldirection, the upper muffle 20 c, the sub-frame 32B, and the upper cover33B integrally lift/lower, and the muffle 20B is opened/closed by theopening/closing part 30B.

Specifically, when the cylinders 31B extend upward, the sub-frame 32B ispushed upward, so that the upper muffle 20 c and the upper cover 33B arealso pushed upward, and the muffle 20B is opened. When the cylinders 31Bretract downward, the sub-frame 32B is pulled downward, so that theupper muffle 20 c and the upper cover 33B are also pulled downward, andthe muffle 20B is closed. The cylinders 31A, 31B extend/retract by apredetermined height h, for example, 400 mm to open and close themuffles 20A, 20B.

As shown in FIG. 4, the main frame 10 has an upstream sideintrusion-preventing plate 10E erected from the main frame 10 on theupstream side of the upper covers 33A and 33B, and a downstream sideintrusion-preventing plate 10F erected from the main frame 10 on thedownstream side of the upper covers 33A and 33B. As shown in FIG. 5B,the upstream side intrusion-preventing plate 10E has the same shape as acombined shape of the side surfaces on the upstream side of the uppercovers 33A and 33B. With the muffles 20A, 20B closed, the upstream sideintrusion-preventing plate 10E contacts the side surfaces on theupstream side of the upper covers 33A and 33B. The upstream sideintrusion-preventing plate 10E is provided above the board-charging port11 so that the inside of the muffle 20A is not visible from the upstreamside of the muffle 20A even in the state where the upper cover 33A isopen, thereby suppressing the intrusion of foreign matter from theupstream side of the muffle 20A into the muffle 20A. Although not shown,the upstream side intrusion-preventing plate 10E prevents the inside ofthe muffle 20B from being visible from the upstream side of the muffle20B even in the state where the upper cover 33B is open, therebysuppressing the intrusion of foreign matter from the upstream side ofthe muffle 20B into the muffle 20B.

Although not shown, the downstream side intrusion-preventing plate 10Fhas the same shape as a combined shape of the side surfaces on thedownstream side of the upper covers 33A and 33B. With the muffles 20A,20B closed, the downstream side intrusion-preventing plate 10F contactsthe side surfaces on the downstream side of the upper covers 33A and33B. The downstream side intrusion-preventing plate 10F is providedabove the board carrying-out port 12 so that the inside of the muffles20A, 20B is not visible from the downstream side of the muffles 20A, 20Beven in the state where the upper cover 33A or the upper cover 33B isopened, thereby suppressing the intrusion of foreign matter from thedownstream side of the muffles 20A, 20B into the muffles 20A, 20B.

As shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 70 is connected to the transferrails 13A, 13B, the drive mechanisms (not shown) for driving thecylinders 31A, 31B, the heaters 7, the heaters 8, the cooling fans 9,the operation display units 71 and a memory unit 72. When the operatoroperates the operation display units 71, the control unit 70 controlsthe transfer speed of the transfer rails 13A, 13B, the timing totransfer the printed circuit boards P1, P2, the timing to extend/retractthe cylinders 31A, 31B, the temperatures of the heaters 7 and theheaters 8, the ON/OFF of the cooling fans 9, and the like. The memoryunit 72 stores information input at the operation display units 71, aninstruction of the control unit 70, an operation time of the solderingapparatus 100, and the like.

Subsequently, an operation example of the soldering apparatus 100 willbe described. It is premised that the control unit 70 operates each unitaccording to various settings input by the operator.

As shown in FIG. 4, the operator starts the soldering apparatus 100 andperforms various settings of the soldering apparatus 100 at theoperation display units 71. Specifically, he or she operates thepersonal computer 71A to input, for example, the temperature settings inthe printed circuit board P1 and the muffle 20A, and operates thepersonal computer 71B to input, for example, the width of the printedcircuit board P2 and the temperature setting in the muffle 20B forperforming various settings.

As shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 70 drives the respective units ofthe soldering apparatus 100 according to the various settings input bythe operation display units 71. The screw shaft of the rail widthadjustment part 41A is driven so that the transfer rails 13A move so asto fit the width of the printed circuit board P1, and that the transferrails 13B move so as to fit the width of the printed circuit board P2.The heaters 7 and the heaters 8 are heated to a predeterminedtemperature, and the cooling fans 9 are driven.

The transfer rails 13A, 13B transfer the printed circuit boards P1, P2from the board-charging port 11 to the board carrying-out port 12 in thearrow direction shown in FIG. 2. When the printed circuit boards P1, P2on which an electronic component for surface mounting is mounted areplaced on the transfer rails 13A, 13B, they are carried from theboard-charging unit 14 into the main frame 10. Furthermore, the printedcircuit board P1 enters the muffle 20A, and the printed circuit board P2enters the muffle 20B. In the preheating zone 17 of each muffle, theheat of the heaters 7 activates the flux applied to the printed circuitboards P1, P2, and removes the oxide film on the surfaces of theelectrodes and the solder paste. Subsequently, when the printed circuitboards P1, P2 are transferred to the main heating zone 18 of eachmuffle, the solder is melted by the heat of the heaters 8. When theprinted circuit boards P1, P2 are transferred to the cooling zone 19 ofeach muffle, the printed circuit boards P1, P2 are cooled and theelectronic components are fixed to the electrodes of the printed circuitboards P1, P2. The printed circuit board P1 cooled in the cooling zone19 exits the muffle 20A, and the cooled printed circuit board P2 exitsthe muffle 20B. Furthermore, the printed circuit boards P1, P2 arecarried out of the main frame 10 from the board carrying-out port 12.

For example, when desiring to open the muffle 20A for maintenance withinthe muffle 20A, the operator operates the personal computer 71A to stopthe drive of the transfer rails 13A and within the muffle 20A and toopen the muffle 20A. Since there is no need to open the muffle 20B atthis time, the drive of the transfer rails 13B and within the muffle 20Bmay be continued, and the soldering of the printed circuit board P2 maybe continued.

When the control unit 70 receives the instruction to open the muffle20A, the control unit 70 stops the drive of the transfer rails 13A andwithin the muffle 20A. When the drive of the transfer rails 13A and themuffle 20A stops, the control unit 70 drives the drive mechanism (notshown) for the cylinders 31A. As shown in FIG. 5A, when the cylinders31A extend upward, the sub-frame 32A is pushed upward by the cylinders31A so that the upper muffle 20 a and the upper cover 33A are alsopushed upward together, and the muffle 20A opens by the height h.

The operator is able to perform maintenance within the muffle 20A whenthe muffle 20A opens. As shown in FIG. 5B, in the state where the muffle20A opens, the upstream side intrusion-preventing plate 10E prevents anobject from intruding into the muffle 20A from the upstream side of themuffle 20A, and the downstream side intrusion-preventing plate 10Fprevents an object from intruding into the muffle 20A from thedownstream side of the muffle 20A. Due to the presence of the upstreamside intrusion-preventing plate 10E and the downstream sideintrusion-preventing plate 10F, no maintenance is performed from thelateral sides on the upstream side and the downstream side of the muffle20A, but maintenance is performed from the lateral side opposite to theposition of the muffle 20B to the muffle 20A, as shown by the arrow A4.

When the maintenance is completed, the operator operates the personalcomputer 71A to close the muffle 20A and to drive the transfer rails 13Aand the inside of muffle 20A. When the control unit 70 receives theinstruction to close the muffle 20A, the control unit 70 drives thedrive mechanism (not shown) for the cylinders 31A. When the cylinders31A retract downward, the sub-frame 32A is pulled downward, so that theupper muffle 20 a and the upper cover 33A are also pulled downwardtogether, and the muffle 20A is closed. When the muffle 20A is closed,the control unit 70 restarts the drive of the transfer rails 13A andwithin the muffle 20A and restarts the soldering of the printed circuitboard P1.

Although not shown, when it is desired to open the muffle 20B formaintenance within the muffle 20B, it is possible to perform the sameoperation as that of opening the muffle 20A. First, the operatoroperates the personal computer 71B to stop the drive of the transferrails 13B and within the muffle 20B and to open the muffle 20B. At thistime, since it is not necessary to open the muffle 20A, the drive of thetransfer rails 13A and within the muffle 20A may be continued, and thesoldering of the printed circuit board P1 may be continued.

When the control unit 70 receives the instruction to open the muffle20B, the control unit 70 stops the drive of the transfer rails 13B andwithin the muffle 20B. When the drive of the transfer rails 13B andwithin the muffle 20B stops, the control unit 70 drives the drivemechanism (not shown) for the cylinders 31B. When the cylinders 31Bextend upward, the sub-frame 32B is pushed upward by the cylinders 31B,so that the upper muffle 20 c and the upper cover 33B are also pushedupward together, and the muffle 20B opens by the height h.

The operator is able to perform maintenance within the muffle 20B whenthe muffle 20B opens. In the state where the muffle 20B opens, theupstream side intrusion-preventing plate 10E prevents an object fromintruding into the muffle 20B from the upstream side of the muffle 20B,and the downstream side intrusion-preventing plate 10F prevents anobject from intruding into the muffle 20B from the downstream side ofthe muffle 20B. Due to the presence of the upstream sideintrusion-preventing plate 10E and the downstream sideintrusion-preventing plate 10F, no maintenance is performed from thelateral sides on the upstream side and the downstream side of the muffle20B, but maintenance is performed from the lateral side opposite to theposition of the muffle 20A to the muffle 20B, as shown by the arrow A5in FIG. 5B.

When the maintenance is completed, the operator operates the personalcomputer 71B to close the muffle 20B and to drive the transfer rails 13Band the inside of muffle 20B. When the control unit 70 receives theinstruction to close the muffle 20B, the control unit 70 drives thedrive mechanism (not shown) for the cylinders 31B. When the cylinders31B retract downward, the sub-frame 32B is pulled downward, so that theupper muffle 20 c and the upper cover 33B are also pulled downwardtogether, and the muffle 20B is closed. When the muffle 20B is closed,the control unit 70 restarts the drive of the transfer rails 13B andwithin the muffle 20B and restarts the soldering of the printed circuitboard P2.

In the present embodiment, the main frame 10 is provided with theopening/closing part 30A for opening/closing the muffle 20A and theopening/closing part 30B for opening/closing the muffle 20B, in thesoldering apparatus 100, so the muffle 20A and the muffle 20B can beopened/closed separately. Therefore, even when the one muffle is opened,it is possible to prevent the exposure of the inside of the othermuffle. Specifically, it is possible to prevent the inside of the muffle20B from being exposed when the muffle 20A is opened, and to prevent theinside of the muffle 20A from being exposed when the muffle 20B isopened. Furthermore, independently different temperature profiles can berespectively set for the muffle 20A and the muffle 20B. Therefore, evenwhen either one of the muffles is open, the soldering operation can becontinued in the other muffle, and, besides, the set temperature profilecan be kept in the other muffle without being affected by thetemperature in the one muffle. Of course, both the muffles 20A, 20B canbe opened according to need.

Since the soldering apparatus 100 includes the muffles 20A, 20B in themain frame 10, soldering can be performed in both the muffles 20A, 20B,so that a large amount of soldering can be efficiently performed ascompared with a single rail type soldering apparatus. In addition, theproduction cost reduction and space saving of the soldering apparatuscan be realized as compared with the case where two conventionalsoldering apparatuses are arranged in parallel. In the solderingapparatus 100, different products may be produced at the same time bytransferring the printed circuit board P1 using the transfer rails 13Aand transferring the printed circuit board P2 using the transfer rails13B, or the same printed circuit board may be carried using the transferrails 13A, 13B.

The configurations of the respective zones in the muffles 20A, 20B arenot limited to those described above, and various zone configurationsare conceivable. For example, the numbers of the preheating zones, mainheating zones and cooling zones are not limited to the numbers of thezones described above, and a vacuum degassing zone for vacuum degassingthe heated printed circuit boards P1, P2 may be provided. When theprinted circuit boards P1, P2 are transferred by intermittent feeding, abuffering zone may be provided to secure a predetermined time in thezone before the intermittent feeding of any of the printed circuitboards P1, P2. Further, the configurations of the zones in the muffle20A and the muffle 20B are the same in the present embodiment, butmutually different zone configurations may be used.

The configuration and operation of the rail width adjustment parts 41Aare not limited to the above-described embodiment. The operator mayoperate a screw adjustment member (not shown) to rotate the screw shaftsof the rail width adjustment parts 41A to change the widths of thetransfer rails 13A, 13B. The widths of the transfer rails 13A, 13B arerespectively configured to have been independently adjusted, but, whenthe printed circuit boards P1, P2 have the same width, they may beinterlocked so that the rail widths of the printed circuit boards P1, P2are the same. In addition, the transfer rails 13A, 13B may be providedwith a warpage preventing mechanism for preventing the warpage of theprinted circuit boards P1, P2.

In the soldering apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the preheatingzone 17, the main heating zone 18 and the cooling zone 19 are providedin each of the muffles 20A, 20B, and the heaters 7 and 8 and the coolingfans 9 are provided in each of the muffles 20A, 20B. Briefly, thesoldering apparatus 100 includes the heaters 7 and 8 and the coolingfans 9 corresponding to the printed circuit boards P1, P2, respectively.Therefore, as compared with the configuration in which the printedcircuit boards P1, P2 are transferred within one case and heated orcooled collectively, the soldering apparatus 100 can uniformly heat orcool each of the printed circuit boards P1, P2.

In the soldering apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the uppermuffles 20 a, 20 c are lifted/lowered by the cylinders 31A, 31B in thevertical direction, without being rotated relative to the lower muffles20 b, 20 d, to be opened/closed. Therefore, for the operator who checksthe inside of the muffle 20A from the arrow A4 side in FIG. 5B in thestate where the muffle 20A opens, the entire muffle 20A becomes visiblewithout preventing the narrowing of the side near the muffle 20B withinthe muffle 20A, i.e., the back side for the operator. Further, for theoperator who checks the inside of the muffle 20B from the arrow A5 side,the entire muffle 20B becomes visible without preventing the narrowingof the side near the muffle 20A within the muffle 20B, i.e., the backside for the operator.

The muffles 20A, 20B are not limited to the embodiment in which they arelifted/lowered to be opened/closed. For example, the upper muffles 20 a,20 c may rotate respectively around the vicinities on the sides to whichthe upper muffles 20 a, 20 c are adjacent as fulcrums, and may beopened/closed by the operators who are located on the sides of thearrows A4 and A5. Further, the present invention is not limited to theembodiment in which the upper cover 33A is attached to the sub-frame 32Aand the upper cover 33B is attached to the sub-frame 32B. The uppercover 33A may be opened/closed separately from the muffle 20A and thesub-frame 32A, and the upper cover 33B may be opened/closed separatelyfrom the muffle 20B and the sub-frame 32B.

The lifting/lowering means are not limited to the cylinders 31A, 31B.Non-multistage cylinders may be used as the lifting/lowering means. FIG.7 shows a non-multistage cylinder 31C in a retracted state and anextended state, and a multistage cylinder 31A, 31B in a retracted stateand an extended state in this order from the left. When the usingnon-multistage cylinders 31C to be extended/retracted by thepredetermined height h, for example, 400 mm, the cylinders 31C may haveto have at least a height of 400 mm, which is equal to the height h,even in the case where the muffles 20A, 20B are closed by retracting thecylinders 31C. On the other hand, it suffices that the multistagecylinders 31A, 31B may have a height of about 200 mm, which is half theheight h, in the state where the muffles 20A, 20B are closed byretracting the cylinders.

Therefore, the soldering apparatus 100 can achieve space saving in theheight direction in the state where the muffles 20A, 20B are closed byusing the cylinders 31A, 31B. As the lifting/lowering means, other meansthat can be driven to extend/retract by oil pressure, air pressure,water pressure or the like can be used. Further, four cylinders 31A, 31Bare arranged in the present embodiment, but the present invention is notlimited to this. Four or more cylinders 31A, 31B may be provided, or thenumbers of the cylinders 31A and 31B may be different from each other.In addition, when the upper muffles 20 a, 20 c rotate and open/close,the cylinders 31A, 31B may be arranged in one row on a side near theoperator.

In the present embodiment, by providing the operation display units 71at one place, even if there is only one operator for operating orconfirming the operation display units 71, the operator does not have tomove between the positions of the personal computer 71A and the personalcomputer 71B. Although two personal computers 71A, 71B are arranged onthe upstream side of the transfer rails 13B, the present invention isnot limited to this. The operation display units 71 may be provided onthe side of the transfer rails 13A, or may be provided on the downstreamside of the transfer rails 13A, 13B. In addition, various settings ofthe transfer rails 13A, 13B and within the muffles 20A, 20B may beperformed by one operation display unit, or an operation unit of thetouch panel system and a display unit such as a liquid crystal panel oran organic EL panel may be integrally combined for use. Various settingsof the transfer rails 13A and the transfer rails 13B, within the muffle20A and within the muffle 20B and the like by the operation displayunits 71 may be identical or different in contents.

In addition, the muffles 20A, 20B may be opened/closed by a button (notshown) provided separately from the operation display units 71. At thistime, for safety, it is preferable that the muffle 20A or the muffle 20Bbe opened/closed by pressing two buttons simultaneously. In addition,for example, if the button for opening/closing the muffle 20A and thebutton for opening/closing the muffle 20B are different from each other,or if a dial or the like for switching the opening/closing of themuffles 20A, 20B is provided, an erroneous operation as to which of themuffles 20A, 20B should be opened/closed can be suppressed.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention is very suitably applied to a soldering apparatusfor soldering a printed circuit board, and, especially, to a reflowdevice for heating and soldering a printed circuit board on which asurface mounted component(s) is (are) mounted.

EXPLANATION OF CODES

-   P1, P2: Printed Circuit Board-   10: Main Frame-   11: Board-charging Port-   12: Board carrying-out Port-   13A: Transfer Rails (First Transfer Means)-   13B: Transfer Rails (Second Transfer Means)-   14: Board-charging Unit-   16: Board Carrying-out Part-   17: Preheating Zone-   18: Main Heating Zone-   19: Cooling Zone-   20A: Muffle (First Reflow Furnace Main Body)-   20B: Muffle (Second Reflow Furnace Main Body)-   20 a, 20 c: Upper Muffle (Upper Main Body)-   20 b, 20 d: Lower Muffle (Lower Main Body)-   30A: Opening/closing Part (First Opening/closing Means)-   30B: Opening/closing part (Second Opening/closing Means)-   31A: Cylinders (First Lifting/lowering Means)-   31B: Cylinders (Second Lifting/lowering Means)-   70: Control Unit-   100: Soldering Apparatus

1. A soldering apparatus comprising: first transfer means fortransferring a printed circuit board; second transfer means provided inparallel to a transfer direction of the printed circuit boardtransferred by the first transfer means; a first reflow furnace mainbody for heating the printed circuit board transferred by the firsttransfer means; a second reflow furnace main body for heating a printedcircuit board transferred by the second transfer means; and a frame forhousing the first reflow furnace main body and the second reflow furnacemain body, wherein the frame contains first opening/closing means foropening/closing the first reflow furnace main body and secondopening/closing means for opening/closing the second reflow furnace mainbody.
 2. The soldering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each ofthe first and second reflow furnace main bodies is configured to have anupper main body and a lower main body, wherein the first opening/closingmeans includes first lifting/lowering means for lifting/lowering theupper main body of the first reflow furnace main body, and wherein thesecond opening/closing means includes second lifting/lowering means forlifting/lowering the upper main body of the second reflow furnace mainbody.
 3. The soldering apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the firstlifting/lowering means is arranged while avoiding the first transfermeans; and wherein the second lifting/lowering means is arranged whileavoiding the second transfer means.
 4. The soldering apparatus accordingto claim 2, wherein the first lifting/lowering means and the secondlifting/lowering means include multistage cylinders.
 5. The solderingapparatus according to claim 2, wherein the lower main body of the firstreflow furnace main body is provided with an elastic member at aposition where the elastic member is sandwiched between the upper mainbody and the lower main body of the first reflow furnace main body andis in contact with them, and wherein the lower main body of the secondreflow furnace main body is provided with an elastic member at aposition where the elastic member is sandwiched between the upper mainbody and the lower main body of the second reflow furnace main body andis in contact with them.
 6. The soldering apparatus according to claim2, wherein the first opening/closing means includes a first upper coverthat covers an upper side and a lateral side of the upper main body ofthe first reflow furnace main body, wherein the second opening/closingmeans includes a second upper cover that covers an upper side and alateral side of the upper main body of the second reflow furnace mainbody, and wherein the frame has an upstream side intrusion-preventingplate that is erected from the frame on an upstream side of the firstupper cover and the second upper cover with respect to a transferdirection of any of the printed circuit boards and a downstream sideintrusion-preventing plate that is erected from the frame on adownstream side of the first upper cover and the second upper cover withrespect to the transfer direction of any of the printed circuit boards.7. The soldering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an upstream endand a downstream end of the first transfer means along the transferdirection of the printed circuit board are provided on the frame; andwherein an upstream end and a downstream end of the second transfermeans along the transfer direction of the printed circuit board are alsoprovided on the frame.
 8. The soldering apparatus according to claim 1,wherein a heat-insulating member is provided around the first reflowfurnace main body and the second reflow furnace main body.
 9. Thesoldering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first reflowfurnace main body and the second reflow furnace main body respectivelyinclude a preheating zone for preheating the printed circuit board, amain heating zone for soldering the preheated printed circuit board, anda cooling zone for cooling the soldered printed circuit board.